eric.cartman
Member
Hi All!
So this time I have a real range report for my Tikka T3 Varmint in 308 Win with Horus Vision Predator 8-26x. W00T! I also have a ton of questions. But first, here are the groups (most are 3 shot, 2 are 5 shot, ALL at 100 yards) and some description:
GROUP ZERO: I didn't know where the scope was zeroed in. So I aimed at the center red diamond and that's where they hit. 5 shots on a clean, cold barrel. Didn't shoot very fast, but I wasn't letting the barrel cool down or anything like that.
ZERO TEST: Duh. After clicking 1 inch up and 5 inches to the right, that's where the next 2 shots landed.
GROUP #1 - #3: Those were shot with (I think) few minutes in between to let the barrel cool down. Strange thing is that they all seam a bit off to the left from the zero test. Either the barrel was getting too warm and they drifted, OR it was getting dirty / lubed with copper and it resulted in the shift. In any case, I gave the scope 2 more clicks to the right (half an inch).
GROUP #1 - #3: I don't know what the heck happened there. The barrel was cold again since I had to go pick up the old target and put a new one on (Markham Park, about 10 minute break).
GROUP #4 - #5: And we're back in business...
GROUP #2: Weird. Did I have a "drifter"? As in hotter load resulting in less drop, or what? 2 shots landed much higher. Ooorrr it may be the combination of SirYouSuck, bad load, rifle, sudden quantum fluctuation resulting in distorted gravitational field right under my bullet???
ALL OTHER GROUPS: All other were shot with a minute or less time in between. With about 30 or so seconds in between shots. Group #6 was a "Oh look I have 5 shots left and I'm ready to go home so let's just aim at the right tip of the square and see what happens. Oh yea, and since wife is waiting home with the baby, let's just hurry." kinna group.
OK, so here's the weird thing... I know I'm shooting a $700 rifle, not a 4K rifle. I know I'm shooting a factory ammo (Federal Gold Medal 175gr). And I know that I'm not the greatest shooter in the world, and I know that my crappy sand bags didn't help either. But can I/this rifle combination do better? I know I can, although I seam to have a good trigger control and I don't flinch at all. I let each and every shot surprise me, because I slowly apply more pull to the trigger. I think my shooting position / rifle rest can use improvement... I can see my heart beat on the cross hair if I hold the rifle too tight to me shoulder. If I release the hold a bit, I can still see a bit of wiggle, maybe 1/25 of an inch on target. Extremely minimal, but still there. And finally, can the rifle do better? Or should I simply accept the limitations of my Tikka and live with the fact that, while not the greatest in the world, it still shoots sub MOA groups most of the time and that's not bad, not bad at all for a $700 rig.
What can I do? Would letting the barrel get back to room temperature in between each group help? Would running a bore snake or cleaning it in any way in between 1 to N groups help?
WHAT CAN I DO TO IMPROVE?
THANKS FOR ALL YOUR SUGGESTIONS!
So this time I have a real range report for my Tikka T3 Varmint in 308 Win with Horus Vision Predator 8-26x. W00T! I also have a ton of questions. But first, here are the groups (most are 3 shot, 2 are 5 shot, ALL at 100 yards) and some description:
GROUP ZERO: I didn't know where the scope was zeroed in. So I aimed at the center red diamond and that's where they hit. 5 shots on a clean, cold barrel. Didn't shoot very fast, but I wasn't letting the barrel cool down or anything like that.
ZERO TEST: Duh. After clicking 1 inch up and 5 inches to the right, that's where the next 2 shots landed.
GROUP #1 - #3: Those were shot with (I think) few minutes in between to let the barrel cool down. Strange thing is that they all seam a bit off to the left from the zero test. Either the barrel was getting too warm and they drifted, OR it was getting dirty / lubed with copper and it resulted in the shift. In any case, I gave the scope 2 more clicks to the right (half an inch).
GROUP #1 - #3: I don't know what the heck happened there. The barrel was cold again since I had to go pick up the old target and put a new one on (Markham Park, about 10 minute break).
GROUP #4 - #5: And we're back in business...
GROUP #2: Weird. Did I have a "drifter"? As in hotter load resulting in less drop, or what? 2 shots landed much higher. Ooorrr it may be the combination of SirYouSuck, bad load, rifle, sudden quantum fluctuation resulting in distorted gravitational field right under my bullet???
ALL OTHER GROUPS: All other were shot with a minute or less time in between. With about 30 or so seconds in between shots. Group #6 was a "Oh look I have 5 shots left and I'm ready to go home so let's just aim at the right tip of the square and see what happens. Oh yea, and since wife is waiting home with the baby, let's just hurry." kinna group.
OK, so here's the weird thing... I know I'm shooting a $700 rifle, not a 4K rifle. I know I'm shooting a factory ammo (Federal Gold Medal 175gr). And I know that I'm not the greatest shooter in the world, and I know that my crappy sand bags didn't help either. But can I/this rifle combination do better? I know I can, although I seam to have a good trigger control and I don't flinch at all. I let each and every shot surprise me, because I slowly apply more pull to the trigger. I think my shooting position / rifle rest can use improvement... I can see my heart beat on the cross hair if I hold the rifle too tight to me shoulder. If I release the hold a bit, I can still see a bit of wiggle, maybe 1/25 of an inch on target. Extremely minimal, but still there. And finally, can the rifle do better? Or should I simply accept the limitations of my Tikka and live with the fact that, while not the greatest in the world, it still shoots sub MOA groups most of the time and that's not bad, not bad at all for a $700 rig.
What can I do? Would letting the barrel get back to room temperature in between each group help? Would running a bore snake or cleaning it in any way in between 1 to N groups help?
WHAT CAN I DO TO IMPROVE?
THANKS FOR ALL YOUR SUGGESTIONS!
